The new Myanmar is starting to look too much like the old Myanmar

In the November 2015 election, Myanmar's long-standing opposition, the National League for Democracy (NLD), swept into office, promising change and new freedoms for the masses after a half-century of military rule. That the party is led by Aung San Suu Kyi, a widely revered Nobel Prize winner and long-time dissident, only added to expectations of dramatic change.

So far, though, things don't appear to be turning out that way. Upon taking power, the NLD promptly proposed legislation that would reinstall some of the junta's draconian restrictions on peaceful protest. And while many political prisoners have been released, the new government continues to pursue charges against some of the country's most dedicated activists - such as Harn Win Aung, who has led resistance to a notorious copper mine built on land grabbed from displaced farmers. The NLD even censored a film at a human rights festival for portraying the military in a critical light. (Courtesy of the-journal.com)